49ers waive K Billy Cundiff

The 49ers are leaving for Atlanta this afternoon and they aren’t packing their safety net.

San Francisco has released kicker Billy Cundiff, who engaged in a week-long practice competition with struggling incumbent David Akers following the regular season. Akers retained his job and made his only field-goal attempt, a 36-yarder, in last week’s divisional-playoff win over Green Bay. Akers ranked 30th in the NFL in field-goal percentage (69.0) this season.

The 49ers did not announce a corresponding roster move and will likely have a 52-man roster for Sunday’s NFC Championship Game, with six players deactivated. The Niners can make three more roster moves during the postseason.

For Cundiff, it marked his third release since the Ravens waived him on Aug. 26. The Redskins released him after he made 7 of 12 field goals in the first five games of the regular season. Cundiff, who was signed Jan. 1, was waived close to a year after he missed a last-second, 32-yard field goal in the Ravens’ 23-20 loss to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 22, 2012.